Studio Wildcard has announced that Ark: Survival Evolved's next full-scale, paid-for expansion Aberration will release on PC, Xbox One, and PlayStation 4 on December 12th.

Aberration, which was originally slated to release in October, is the second paid-for expansion to come to Ark, following last year's desert-themed Scorched Earth.

Its main feature is a new, horror-tinged map, set on an inhospitable, malfunctioning Ark - which, for those not in the know, are basically [MILD SPOILER] giant, floating space zoos run by some very naughty aliens [/MILD SPOILER].

Setting it apart from other Ark maps, Aberration's radioactive, earthquake-ravaged surface isn't home to much of anything that isn't likely to cause you serious harm. Instead, its most interesting sights are found among its gloomy, labyrinthine underground caves and tunnels.

There's the fairly adorable Lantern Pug, for instance, or - if you fancy taming something with a little more practical use - the gliding Rock Drake, and the fearsome Reaper Queen, which will happily impregnate your friends with a cheery chest-burster.

Come December 12th, Aberration will be available as a standalone purchase or as part of Ark's three-map season pass. To entice you into a buy, Wildcard has announced a variety of (slightly inconsistent) Black Friday discounts across all platforms:

Steam/PC

ARK: Survival Evolved - 50% off

ARK Season Pass - 25% off

Xbox One (includes Xbox One X enhancements)

ARK: Survival Evolved - 25% off

ARK: Scorched Earth - 35% off

ARK Explorers Edition (base + Season Pass) - 30% off

ARK Season Pass - 25% off

PlayStation 4

ARK: Survival Evolved - 35% off

ARK: Scorched Earth - 35% off

ARK Explorers Edition (base + Season Pass) - 30% off

ARK Season Pass - 25% off

If nothing else, Aberration should prove marginally less controversial than its predecessor Scorched Earth, by virtue of it not being a paid-for expansion developed and released in the middle of early access, when everyone was expecting Wildcard to finish the main game.

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Matt Wales is a freelance writer and gambolling summer child who won't even pretend to live a busily impressive life of dynamic go-getting for the purposes of this bio. He is the sole and founding member of the Birdo for President of Everything Society.